Quick Site Links:
Home
Site Table of Contents
====================
Our Purpose
Tenets of Faith & Ethics
Our Ministry Team
Support for this
Ministry
Newsletter of the
Month
Sign our
Guestbook
Links
====================
Nursing Home Ministry
Handbook<==!!!!!!!
Hymnbook and CDs
Monthly Calendar:
Scripture for Every
Day (a free ".pdf"
download)
====================
Christian Poetry
The Journal
Poem of the Month
Past Poems of the Month:
A Gold Mine
of Poems!
====================
Small Group Ministries
"Chapter & Verse"
New Material!!!!!!!
Prayer
====================
Leadership
Jerry Johnson
Director of Ministry &
President.
Pastor, Good
Shepherd
Dar Johnson
Assistant to the
Director
Rev. Larry McAdoo
Secretary
Retired Chaplain,
USN
====================
Endorsements
Dr. Ray Stiles
President,
Providence
Bible College
and Seminary
Rev. John Dooley
President, Heart of
Compassion
Partnerships
Pastor, Apostles
Lutheran Church
Steve Newton
President, Newton
Media and
Associates
Dr. Jim Arcieri
Pastor
Former Headmaster,
StoneBridge School
Toby DeBause
Executive Director,
Crisis Pregnancy
Center
of Tidewater
Wayne Skinner
President,
Outreach for Christ
Rev. Ted Bashford
Director,
Union Mission
Adobe® Reader® is required to view some documents on this Web site. Click here to download a free copy of Adobe Reader.
presents
The Journal
For Jesus' Sheep
Salvation, The Christian Walk, Revival, The Loss of a Loved One
Volume 6, Number 1
Published by:
Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc.
1543 Norcova Ave., Norfolk, VA 23502
Copyright 1995, 1999 by Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this journal may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.
The views expressed by contributing authors are not necessarily those of Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc.
The expenses of this publication are met by the kind financial support of you, our readers.
Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc. is a non-profit, tax-exempt corporation, registered in the State of Virginia.
YOU HAVE A PART!
Each believer has faith and experience in Jesus Christ. This personal treasure multiplies in our sharing it with others. We invite you to write down what the Lord has given you. Send us your poem or prose to encourage others in their faith. Please
click here for details.
Gerald T. Johnson, President
Gerald T. Johnson, Editor
Dar Johnson, Assistant Editor
Jeff Hadsell, Contributing Editor
From The Editors:
In this issue we have included selections under four separate topics: Salvation, The Christian Walk, Revival, and The Loss of a Loved One. Each of the articles and poems herein are a reflection from the heart of someone who loves Jesus. Just like you, they have had some experience or made some observation that is unique enough to them that they want to share it. All we have done is collected them under these headings. Read them as a personal letter from them to you and take it to heart. If you do, I know the authors would feel honored.
Faith in Jesus Christ is priceless. Each one of you who love Him are extremely dear to the Body of Christ. All of you are precious. This journal is for all of you, from all the various branches of the visible Church. For this very reason, as a casual reader you may find some concept in this journal which seems to contradict what you hold to be the truth. Even I, as the Editor, certainly do not consider every thought in this edition as infallible! Though we would certainly seek not to propagate lies, we do understand that all of us are learning all of the time. Therefore, we feel it is necessary to be as broad as possible in the scope of Christianity which all of us embrace. And we seek to reflect this feeling by the scope of material we print here. This is your journal...and, at the same time, it is also the journal of all your spiritual brothers and sisters who believe in and love our Savior and Master, Jesus Christ. Read here the attempts of others to express their visions and experiences of our infinitely valuable Faith. And remember, YOU have a view of the Truth from which we can benefit, please send it to us. And if you can put it in the form of a poem, all the better.
We wish to mention in gratitude those whose donations make this production possible. We make every effort to keep costs at a minimum, but expenses are inevitable as we seek to bring you a quality product and still distribute it without charge. If you are able, even in a small way, we invite you to join us in this work through your financial assistance. Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc. is a non-profit, tax-exempt corporation registered in the State of Virginia, USA, since June of 1994. Please consider sending your donation in today! If you have any questions, feel free to call me, Jerry Johnson at (757) 714-3133 or write 1543 Norcova Ave., Norfolk, VA 23502, USA. Thank you for your consideration.
And, now, read and enjoy this blessing from your family in Christ!
Love, In Jesus' Name,
Gerald T. Johnson, Editor and Director of Ministry.
SALVATION
It's
God's Doing, Not Mine!
Sandy Fuller
The
Simple Facts Of Life
Anonymous
Today
With The Lord
Leo Parenteau
My Testimony
Valarie Widgins
Sought Out: Delivered from transsexuallity
Stephen Short
THE CHRISTIAN WALK
Revelation
Margaret Park
The Rocky
Road
Jeff Lissenden
Selah
Beulah Mitchell, Seton
Manor, Hampton, VA
My Best
Friend
Alene Wixson
My Happy
Thought
Frances Orgain
In
The Shadow Of Death
From the Personal
Testimony of Vergie McCall Narrative By Jeff Hadsell
REVIVAL
The
Centrality Of Christ
Don Rumble
Pray For
Revival
Damon E. Wyatt
Apathy
Matthew Barlow
America In
Danger
Matthew Barlow
THE LOSS OF A LOVED ONE
My Old
Rocking Chair
Oretha Babb
A
Dear True Friend Was He
Mrs. Helen Salyers
Home Page
Table of Contents
For Web Site
SALVATION
It's God's Doing, Not Mine!
Sandy Fuller
"I haven't done anything for a year! I've either been in the hospital or at home in a wheelchair." was my exasperated reply to a request that I speak before a ladies' community Bible study. "But Sandy, you work with the disabled on horseback, train therapy dogs and take them into nursing homes, paint note cards and calligraphy scripture in them. " was the lady's warm response. "Yeah sure, I can't even hold a pen now. I'm not doing anything." I said.
Boy! talk about a pity party! It was a big one, and I was the only one invited! It wasn't long though before the Lord crashed it. He said, "Those ladies don't need to hear what YOU are doing, but what I am doing THROUGH you." Ouch, that hurt. I had always given the Lord credit for anything I'd accomplished. How had I extrapolated that to mean that if I wasn't doing anything, I wasn't being used by Him? Nonsense, that's pride talking, not God!!
Are you struggling with the same things? Do you feel others are more worthy of God's love because they are busy doing His work? Maybe all you are doing is laundry, dishes, and transporting kids. So you feel like you are doing less for God. Maybe you are, but then again, maybe not. You see, man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart (II Samuel 16:7). If you are doing what God has given you to do, then you are doing His work. Perhaps the reason He says to obey is better than to sacrifice (I Samuel 15:22) is because often obedience IS sacrifice! Our humanness would rather be DOING something, SEEING something happen or FEELING a sense of accomplishment. But what does God want? He wants our lives to draw others to Him.
This lesson was really driven home last August. My arthritis had taken a rapid downward spiral last year. Besides a ruptured bowel and rapid deterioration of bone and muscle my greatest challenge was the collapsing of the vertebrae in my neck. Consequently I began experiencing an ongoing loss of function & sensation. It had gotten to the point that I could no longer dress or feed myself. The increasing loss of sensation continued to frustrate even the simplest of tasks and impair the enjoyment of the little things previously taken for granted like touching the soft hair of my dogs, feeling someone hold my hand, or even knowing where my arms & legs were at any given time if my eyes weren't open.
Well, last August we visited my brother in Georgia, a Doctor of Chiropractic. He took an X-ray of my neck. After he viewed the film he turned, looking amazed and sad. He said he had never seen a neck that bad. The vertebrae were so collapsed they were indistinquishable. What was left of the fifth vertebrae was pushed back and up. The spinal cord was making 90 degree turns!
My husband was white. He softly asked, "How much time does she have? 2 years, 1 year, 6 months?"
My brother slowly shook his head and said, "Any Radiologist seeing this X-ray would either assume she was dead or at best in bed paralyzed." was his answer. I was already on borrowed time.
The news had an unexpected effect. It changed my view point on everything. Instead of grieving for what I had lost, I found joy in what I had: family, home, pets, friends, sunrise, sunsets. More importantly, it struck me that EVERYONE is on borrowed time! We live each day by the Grace of God. Knowing that perhaps my time was to be shorter than those around me made me really examine my life. Was my life truly a witness, drawing others to God? It was urgent for me to make sure those I loved, family, friends, and neighbors knew the way of salvation. What God wanted me to DO was to BE a messenger of His love. That's what He is calling all of us to be. By obeying His will we sacrifice ours.
I challenge you to BE a witness for the Lord. We are all on borrowed time. Are you sure of your salvation? Ask someone you love, because maybe no one else will.
To help some of you "talk" to friends and loved ones about this I wanted a brief explanation that could be easily copied and just handed to someone. The results are on the next page. I was going to say "snip it" and "ship it'' "copy it" and "clip it"," read it" and "rite it" (oops) but I realized Christ was never flippant about something so important. So pray on it and pass it on:
SALVATION
The Simple Facts Of Life
What do you miss by being a Christian?
1. Hell.
2. A lasting relationship with Satan himself.
What belief does Satan propagate to ensure such a relationship?
1. Heaven and Hell aren't real.
2. I'm not as bad as others I know.
3. I'm not good enough to go to Heaven.
4. There are many roads to Heaven.
5. God is good, He'd never send anyone to Hell.
6. God is "the man upstairs."
What does the Word of the Lord (not necessarily any particular church) have to say about this?
1. Heaven will one day be His Kingdom established on Earth,
where pain, tears, and death are abolished forever. Hell will be
a place where torment and groaning souls welcome death but never
die.
2. When you come before the Father, your life will be compared to
Jesus, no one else!
3. There is none righteous, no not one. Christ died to represent
you before God. By trusting Jesus, He promises that nothing can
ever separate you from Him.
4. Jesus said, " I am the way, no one comes to the Father
except by me."
5. We send ourselves to Hell. He provides the only way out! God
is standing by you, an ever present help in times of trouble.
He's not some distant "Higher Power".
The LORD is standing at your side right now, holding out His hand to you. Will you put yours in His?
This was given to you because someone cares. You read it because you care. Why not give it to someone you care about? Heaven and Hell are real! Where do you want them to spend it?
SALVATION
Today With The Lord
Leo Parenteau
Lord, bless my life for me this day.
Anoint my life for You to say
What's good for me that fills my needs....
Come guide my heart to do Your deeds.
Lord, guard my thoughts, fill up my mind
With Your love for others, while I have time.
For I have family who are not yet won....
Then call me home, Lord, when my job is done.
SALVATION
My Testimony
Valarie Widgins
I walked by these doors day after day,
never once dreaming He would come my way.
I was lost and tired just trying to make it,
looking and wanting, but I couldn't shake it.
Wondering and dreaming, I just could not see,
my life, my hope, nor my future to be.
The drugs had me captured, self had me drained,
all that I knew, I was there to remain.
My body, my mind, my false security,
had strengthened themselves on much publicity.
Oh what a life, I knew not what,
all I could see, was life in a rut.
A hole so deep, so dark and futile,
that my actions and outlook had become totally hostile.
In and out of prisons, I marched up and down,
in the city, out of the city, all around town.
What did I need, what was I doing,
why was my life destined for ruin?
My children all saw, their mouths were closed,
my life in it's obvious but certain depose.
Death was all around me, weapons and games,
people with hatred, violence, and shame.
What was next, why could I not see,
that not only destruction, but death awaited me?
Satan had me in his deceptive grip,
time and eternity had begun to slip.
I longed for and desired a better way to live,
I just couldn't stop taking in order to give.
What I needed most, man could not provide,
something more meaningful had to come from inside.
Things began to happen, I moved up town,
my outlook and my values had come up and not down.
Not the place, nor the environment did this to me,.
but time and mercy had awaited me.
I still kept destroying my physical body,
one thing had changed and that was the melody.
The joy of the things that I once partook,
had lost its fervor and took on another outlook.
The drugs had left, my mind was changed quick,
no more drugs and I was not sick.
Something was happening, and I didn't know what,
my desires had changed, there was no more rut.
Then one day I was invited to church,
and satan knew then he had lost his perch:
To draw from, to rend, to destroy, and to kill,
but I, me Val had saw that hill.
The hill that David said I should look unto,
and when I did, satan was really through.
Jesus had called me into his marvelous light,
I came, I saw, and accepted in delight.
Now I am running all I know how,
and to Jesus and Him only, humbly I bow.
SALVATION
Sought Out: Delivered from
transsexuallity
Stephen Short
For the first 43 years of his life Stephen Short didn't really know who he was. At about the age of 3 1/2 Stephen told his parents he wanted to be a girl. His parents then took him to his pediatrician, who sent him to a specialist who gave him a series of male hormone injections. However, the injections had no effect on his mind. Because of a bonding process which didn't seem to occur between Stephen and his father, he overbonded with his mother. Throughout his childhood, he grew more comfortable with feminine things than those of the masculine realm. Stephen went to church regularly with his family, knowing of Jesus Christ, but never coming to a fully committed intimate relationship with Him.
During his adolescent years, Stephen became less and less comfortable with his own gender. As he compared himself with other boys, he somehow never felt he measured up. In his late teens, after much turmoil within himself, and his family, he moved to New Orleans, where he spent most nights in bars and nightclubs, looking for companionship and acceptance. It was there that he met a couple of transsexuals who taught him how to start living as Bridget, a woman. In order to make a living, he became a female prostitute and female stripper. By age 19 , Stephen had moved to Chicago and had a career as a female stripper in Mafia night clubs. At 21, he began five years of silicone injections into his face and body in order to achieve a womanly appearance.
By age 35, he'd lived over 17 years as Bridget--an alcohol and prescription drug addict. Feeling lost and hopeless, he entered a secular hospital treatment program. It was during this time that a pastor from a gay church began to visit him and tell him of Jesus' love for him. After his release, Stephen began to attend a gay church, eventually ending up on it's board of directors. Attributing it to spiritual discernment, he knew Scripture was being distorted: that being gay and Christian didn't work! He left the gay church. At 39, Stephen got involved in a lucrative fraudulent prescription scam. By 41, he'd been arrested in Virginia and put on probation. With no foundation, or answers for his life, he returned to the drug scam, which led to his arrest in Utah, at age 42. Upon arrival in prison, he waited in the hospital section for several hours: the warden informed Stephen that he'd do his time in the woman's facility.
For many years, Stephen had told God he didn't know how to change...that God would have to do it. Another prayer was one his mother taught him, "Lord I pray for the knowledge of Your will and the strength to carry it out". Desiring the Lord in his life but not knowing how to change, Stephen put it in God's hands.
A year and a half into his sentence, Stephen heard of a Christian inmate, transferred from another state. Hearing she was a genuinely committed woman of God, he wanted to meet her. After several weeks of talking with her in the day room, she gave him Rebecca Brown's book, He Came To Set The Captive Free.
While reading about how evil is allowed to come into one's life, Stephen found a listing of sins. Among them, Homosexuality. For the first time ever Stephen saw that transsexuality, like homosexuality was sin against God's will and that he had made that choice for his life. Knowing supernatural grace had shown him the truth, Stephen gave his life to Jesus right then. He also knew that the God who had showed him the truth could also restore him to who he truly was-- Stephen, son of the Living God, not Stephanie.
On October 14th, 1993, that belief became reality. After hours of silicone removal surgery, a new man-- the real Stephen emerged. Today he is living and working in Virginia Beach, Virginia and gladly gives testimony of what God has done in his life:
AND THEY SHALL CALL THEM THE HOLY PEOPLE, THE REDEEMED OF THE LORD; AND YOU SHALL BE CALLED SOUGHT OUT, A CITY NOT FORSAKEN Isaiah 62:12
SALVATION
Revelation
Margaret Park
"Send me," I said in my blindness,
So willing to be used of the Lord,
"Wherever I can, I will serve Thee,
Just use me by deed and by word."
God looked in my heart, but still loved me,
In spite of all that He knew,
That in pride and self-love I would serve Him,
My "goodness" would ever shine through.
And I, in my pride and my blindness,
knew not that hidden away,
Were sins that would keep me from living,
And serving the Lord in His way.
So God in His tender compassion,
In mercy and love: His way,
Began His miraculous working
To fashion this vessel of clay.
"Send me," I said in my blindness,
He sent me, but not to the field,
Instead, to the desert He led me,
Until all of myself I did yield.
Until, not in joy did I see Him,
But out of despair I did cry,
"Dear God, there is no good in me,
My God, oh my God, stay nigh!"
And God, in His tender compassion,
In mercy and love: His way,
Enfolded my heart in His keeping,
And there I will forever stay.
"Oh God, no longer in blindness,
I offer myself unto Thee,
For I have nothing to offer,
But, Lord, I ask, live Thou in me."
THE CHRISTIAN WALK
The Rocky Road
Jeff Lissenden
No one said it would be easy,
It would be a Rocky Road.
When you choose to follow Jesus,
You'll never be alone.
Just like a hurdler
Keep your eye on the goal - - -
The obstacles aren't even there.
He is like a girder,
And He will always care.
Jesus was convicted for no crime.
Let's go back to that time - - -
He was beaten and abused
Given chance to reply but refused.
So He carried His cross
Up that Rocky Road and lost
But really, He won!
He died that we might live.
He died to set us free.
He gave all He could give.
But some still don't see.
On the road to Emmaus
They saw Him, but still didn't see.
Walk the narrow and the straight.
Take the narrow road to the narrow gate,
And don't give up - He's always there.
He loves you and He'll always care.
THE CHRISTIAN WALK
Selah
Beulah Mitchell, Seton Manor, Hampton, VA
The Lord has been so good to me
Throughout these many years.
He helps me through my troubles
And calms my many fears.
He knows just what to do for me
When sorrow brings it's load.
Somehow He lifts each burden.
He is my blest abode.
At times I am so troubled
With all the cares of life.
At times the burdens get so great
And there is inward strife.
But something always happens
To make me stop and pray.
And not yield to temptation
But walk within His way.
When I am sick and weary
And there's no more I can do.
He reaches down His loving hand
And whispers, "I'm with you."
It's then my spirit soars on wings
To know He's by my side;
I'm safe because His love for me
Will evermore abide.
THE CHRISTIAN WALK
My Best Friend
Alene Wixson
Many years ago there came out a popular song entitled, "You're My Everything." The words were directed to an earthly being. The following are my words to the same tune:
You're my everything, the blessed Three-In-One
You're my everything, here beneath the sun
You gave me love, you gave hope and my salvation
You're the first to whom I turn
In all creation
You're my everything that I'll ever need
You're the Psalm I sing
And the Word I read
You're the Alpha, Omega, eternity without end,
You're my Savior and my strength
And my best Friend.
THE CHRISTIAN WALK
My Happy Thought
Frances Orgain
Suddenly one day I realized I was old;
Not just "getting older," but Old if truth be told.
The knowledge didn't frighten me,
Just made me kind of sad
That I had missed so many
Of the chances I had had;
That trip to China and Japan
That I'd so longed to see;
The book I vowed I'd write one day
Were never going to be.
My weeks and months are measured
And the days are flying by,
So much to plan and think about
Before my time draws nigh.
And then I had a wondrous thought-
Magnificent and Grand-
That maybe getting old
Is God reaching for our hand.
THE CHRISTIAN WALK
In The Shadow Of Death
From the Personal Testimony of Vergie McCall; Narrative By Jeff Hadsell
You wouldn't know it to look at it, but the human body is mostly water, with a minuscule amount of diverse chemicals artfully mixed in. When too much water gets into the mix, the artful balance is lost and the body suffers. In 1993, Vergie McCall began to learn that truth, the hard way.
Chapter One of Vergie's experience was a chronic weariness that soon turned her morning routine into an exhausting chore. In order to be able to do her work as a phone councilor at CBN, she had to stay in bed until it was time to go. But even that did not keep tiredness from plaguing her as she ministered to others.
Saturday, January 29th, 1994. Chapter Two began. Not knowing for sure what was causing her weariness, Vergie took a dose of Epsom salt with lemon. It proved to be like dropping a lit match into a gasoline can.
Vergie awoke, locked in a prison of semi-consciousness. She was unable to respond to the persistent calls of her son, Jermaine. When she finally did fully awaken, her aching body was consumed by a voracious thirst for water.
This sent Vergie to the doctor, who prescribed fluid pills for her. But despite the medication and a forty-day fast, fluid began rapidly accumulating in her feet and her ankles.
Finally,..."I went to get out of bed, but I couldn't stand on my feet. My toes were turned sideways and my feet were twice their normal size."
After Jermaine had helped his mother back into bed, Vergie prayerfully sought out a rheumatologist in the phone book. She found a Christian doctor and, with legs now swollen up to her knees, Vergie went and heard him diagnose her problem as Lupus.
"The swelling was so severe, I couldn't bend my knees, couldn't drive the car, couldn't go up or down stairs. Any pressure or touch on my legs brought pain."
And things quickly went from bad to terrible.
"My legs swelled to the point that the skin of my legs, thighs and the upper part of my body was rupturing and the fluid was draining. I could not even get out of a chair by myself."
Chapter Two had reached it's horrific conclusion. But Chapter Three, as it began, appeared to hold little in the way of encouragement.
Vergie was referred to a kidney specialist who arranged a kidney biopsy for her. On June 7th, 1994, in Chesapeake General Hospital, the answer finally came: There was scar tissue in Vergie's kidneys as a result of the Lupus. Tissue that had reduced the kidney's capacity down to just fifty percent.
That, was the good news.
The bad news was that it would take chemo-therapy to clear out the scar tissue. A treatment which, besides making her sick, would probably cause her to lose her hair.
God, however, had something else in mind.
At the behest of The Holy Spirit, Vergie directed Jermaine to oil her hair with olive oil, from root to tip just before each chemo treatment. Not only did her hair NOT fall out,....it also grew.
And that was but the beginning.
A treatment schedule that was supposed to be monthly, bi-monthly and then, quarterly, ended up being monthly, going straight to quarterly. Without incident of infection, the built-up fluid has gone and Vergie's kidney's have full capacity once more.
"My feet and ankles are back to normal, my weight is down. I'm half the size I was, I can bend my knees...I can go up and down stairs...........
"I thank God for His mercy and grace.
"God has enabled me to go on with the ministry He has entrusted to me.
"God's Word is true;.....by His stripes we ARE healed."
REVIVAL
The Centrality Of Christ
Don Rumble
God's intent in establishing His order at the end of the ages is to center everything in, gather everything unto, and sum everything up in His Son, the Lord Jesus. Everything will be gathered around Christ; He is the center of the purposes of God.
In view of that Divine Order which was to mark the completion of the ages, when He should make everything...center in Him. Eph. 1:10 Twentieth Century New Testament
Men may try to escape the reality of who Jesus is in this life; but in the end they will face the inescapable truth of His centrality and lordship in the universe. Preparation for that day is found in walking under His sovereign rulership today. The Father is dealing with us to give the place to His Son in our hearts that He has given Him in the universe! To the degree that Jesus is central in our lives, we are in harmony with the purposes of God.
For some church groups, their building is central to their existence. For others, perhaps it is their choir, youth ministry, social programs or political activism. Still others gather around the preaching of sound biblical truth by a gifted and eloquent leader(s). However, what has not sprung from Christ (His leading) is but dead works done in His Name. What is of Him will stand for eternity; what is not will be shaken. At issue is not how successful an assembly may appear, but how much of their activity springs from God's initiative and expresses His heart.
As we view the Church, some of what can be seen on the spiritual landscape is the effort of leaders who have caught a vision of God's intention. However, in failing to let Him bring it to pass through His people, they try to implement it by stirring the Church to action in various directions that seem appropriate to them. The results fall short of what God intends, producing sects, apostolic 'feudal systems' and para-church organizations. It all boils down to this: Christian leadership has not been patient, waiting and allowing God to establish what He said He would do. Instead, what has been produced are men's interpretations of His plans. But God is not building men's interpretations of His plans. He wants nothing less than His own heart's desire expressed in the earth. That is more grand than any one man or group of men can grasp or implement. The purposes of God are bigger than our vision! No matter how mature we might be!
How are we to build the Church in anticipation of where God is going if His purposes are beyond what we now see? This is a crucial question. Because many do not deal with this issue, they establish that which meets apparent, immediate needs. Such ministry may look and even be successful for a season but, in the long run, is unable to adapt and embrace the continuing revelation of God's full intent.
How then are we to build God's house? We must establish the centrality of Jesus into the lives of God's people! The implications of this are evident. Neither money, ministry, marriage, or career can be central. Everything must recede back into the shadows giving Him His rightful place in our midst. Jesus...center stage! Let all eyes be focused on Him; it is 'His show'! When we gather together corporately, we must learn to gather to Him. Leadership must learn that we are not the 'main event'; He is! If He does not give us something to say, then let us be silent. May we not speak simply because everyone expects us to. Let us speak only because we have the word of the Lord in our mouths.
Leadership must train God's people to hear His voice better. We do the flock no service when we preach truth from the Scriptures when God is not anointing us to. At that point, we are informing their minds, not feeding their spirits. When we equate intellectual knowledge with spiritual food, we lay a foundation for spiritual pride in the Church.
Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. I Cor. 8:1
The biggest cause of division in the Church is pride. A primary cause of pride is that we gather around knowledge more than the person of the Lord Jesus. And when we minister saying, 'This is the word of the Lord', when it is not, we train God's people to hear our voice, not His. Thus we muddy the waters. Then when God decides to move in new ways, the people are not conditioned to move at His command. They have been conditioned to hear us. However innocently we do it, we gather people unto ourselves and not unto Him. Then, working with those who respond to us, we implement our interpretations of what we see in the Scriptures. But,
Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Psalms. 127:1
How many times has God wanted to speak through someone in a meeting who was not a (the ) leader? But because that was not the 'normal' way of doing things, God was silenced. Until there is deep repentance among the leadership in God's house, we will continue to promote division. The problem surpasses whether or not we have correct building methodology or proper church structure. It is that man has wielded control in God's house. The Church is out of order. It is not in harmony with the economy that exists in heaven. God has a view to establish a people on earth who are a testimony of the order and economy of heaven. Part of our problem is that we do not trust the Holy Spirit to accomplish His mission. He was not kept in heaven to establish order there. He has been poured out upon us to bring the order and reality of heaven into the earth through the revelation of Jesus in our midst!
Are we contributing to His goal of building a house where He Himself is the central focus of the people we serve? Or are we building "a name" for ourselves? Let us consider these things as we arise and build in harmony with Him.
REVIVAL
Pray For Revival
Damon E. Wyatt
Lord send a mighty revival;
Please Lord, please don't delay.
The world is sick with a fever
Without you we are in full decay.
Oh Spirit, we need your downpouring;
We need thy Pentecostal power.
Breathe on us Spirit from heaven;
You are the need of the hour.
Your Church seems to have need for nothing;
But yet we are careless and cold.
Anoint our eyes with thy eye-salve;
Please draw us back to the fold.
Send revival; Reach deep within us;
May we turn from our wicked ways.
Help us lift our faces to heaven;
For we are living in the last days.
Only revival can save us;
Oh Lord, there's a story to tell.
The simple plan of salvation;
And also the horrors of Hell.
Oh Lord, send the revival;
We know you will have the last say.
Heal our land you so bountifully gave us;
While we humble ourselves and pray.
LORD! Give that mighty revival;
May we be what you would have us to be.
Hear our prayers as we cry out to heaven.
May the revival begin in me.
REVIVAL
Apathy
Matthew Barlow
Christ visited the Church one Sunday morn
And cried out passionately,
"YOUR PEWS ARE EMPTY, WHERE ARE MY YOUTH !!
I Have Somewhat Against Thee."
Have you forgotten why I came down
To hang on that infamous cross?
I suffered and died and bore your sins
To save that which was lost.
Yet there you sit, complacent and sheltered
Satisfied with the status quo.
While all about you the land is filled
With young people who need me so.
Have You Lost The Vision I Gave To You,
The Commission To Build My Church?
WHY SIT YOU THERE IN APATHY
WHEN ALL ABOUT THERE IS PLENTY OF WORK ???
Will you crouch there, afraid to soil your robes
While my youth go down the drain ?
DID I COME DOWN FROM THE FATHER ABOVE
TO SUFFER AND DIE IN VAIN ??
When time merges into eternity
And I return to claim my Bride
You could lose your place in my Kingdom above
Because of Indifference,... Apathy,... and Pride.
REVIVAL
America In Danger
Matthew Barlow
While Christ's Church has been spreading the gospel
Throughout a lost world in dire travail,
America, our once favored nation
Has been courting the Gods of Baal !!!
The foul breath of unholy Humanism
Is blowing out the light of truth.
Washington, rushing on without bourn or direction
Has become a house of ill repute !!
The abjects have purloined the nation.
Their evil purpose and unending goal
Is to stamp out the forces of Christianity
And thus, destroy America, our God-given home !!
The vultures are swiftly gathering
A lion is growling and pawing the gates,
The jackals are crying and howling
As Satan prepares the last gruesome cap plate !!
America, with it's civil religion,
Demanding equal allegiance to country and God,
Must return to the New Testament principle;
Christ is the only mediator acceptable to the Most High God !!
The Church must send forth it's anointed prophets
To warn our rulers with courage grim:
"With your pride and pretensions of power
You are leading America down the road to unpardonable sin !!!
THE LOSS OF A LOVED ONE
My Old Rocking Chair
Oretha Babb
Sitting alone in my old rocking chair,
Listening for foot steps on the porch that I seldom hear
Hoping and praying each night that I live
That God will take me home.
As darkness settles around me at night,
I think of the good times I've had in my life
And I get so lonesome and so blue,
So I rock alone, in my old rocking chair.
Just five years ago this past May,
I went to sleep with him close by my side,
But when I awoke, God had taken him home
To be with Him in heaven.
I miss him so much I don't know what to do,
Sometimes I feel like I can't go on.
But when I get so lonesome and blue,
I rock and pray all alone in my old rocking chair.
I love my children, grandchildren,
Great-grandchildren and all my friends
But I feel like they're all my children
And I love them all so much and hope God will bless them
And keep them in His care.
My old rocking chair has begun to creak,
It's getting old like me.
But when I'm gone, don't throw it in the dumpster,
Just put it in the old shed and let it rest.
And if by some chance you ever think of me,
Just say she rocked and cried in that old rocking chair.
Editor's Note: Mrs. Babb, now a resident at Courtland Healthcare Center, wrote this song shortly after her husband passed away. She recited it from memory...she is blind.
THE LOSS OF A LOVED ONE
A Dear True Friend Was He
Mrs. Helen Salyers
He was always loving and kind,
Always ready to help where ever he could.
To everyone he was so good,
Even when you felt blue
He would always cheer you.
He just had that kind of way
With words he'd always say.
He would always make you laugh,
Even if you didn't feel like it.
He always had a smile,
That just made life worthwhile.
Just his warm tender touch,
Made you feel he cared so much.
In all the years I knew him,
He never changed.
Each time I met him,
He was always just the same.
A friend indeed was he.
His form may be missing,
And his smile we cannot see.
But he will live on,
In our hearts and memories.
He's won the victory,
He's finished the race.
And now he sees
Jesus face-to-face,
And tells the story: Saved by grace.
No more pain and no more sorrow,
He's happy in that sweet tomorrow.
He's strolling down the streets of gold,
With those he knew in days of old.
His cares in this old world are through,
Someday by Grace we'll join him, me and you,
And all the loved ones we loved so dear,
Oh, he left so many friends when he left here.
Yes! Someday soon we will again all meet,
'Round the throne of Jesus in our heavenly home.
Where joy is unending, fellowship sweet,
Where death never comes to leave us alone.
We will live forever in that home above,
With God, the angels, and the Jesus we love.
What a glorious day that will be,
Him sharing Jesus' presence with me!.
There will be no more heartache or care
No more burdens to bear.
Oh!
Won't it be wonderful there!
Copyright 1995, 1999, 2000 by Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this journal may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher.
The views expressed by contributing authors are not necessarily those of Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc.
The expenses of this publication are met by the kind financial support of our readers.
Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc. is a non-profit, tax-exempt corporation, registered in the State of Virginia.
Leave your message, comment, or request in our guestbook.
Special thanks to Elton Smith and Songs of Praise for our lovely background music written to glorify God.
Return To Table Of Contents for This Journal
Table of Contents for Web Site
Copyright, 2000 by Christian Concourse Ministries, Inc. All rights reserved.